Fitting for batteries of wall mounted wall closets



J H SCHMID Sept. 6, 1966 FITTING FOR BATTERIES OF WALL MOUNTED WALLCLOSETS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Original Filed July 27. 1961 O R LI INVENTOR.H, SGHMID JOHN J. H. SCHMID Sept. 6, 1966 FITTING FOR BATTERIES OF WALLMOUNTED WALL CLOSETS Original Filed July 27. 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 2ZIVVZIVTOR JOHN H. Sum n0 United States Patent 3,271,054 FITTING FORBATTERIES OF WALL MOUNTED WALL CLOSETS John H. Schmid, Erie, Pa.,assignor t0 Zurn Industries, Inc, Erie, Pa., a corporation ofPennsylvania Continuation of application Ser. No. 127,248, July 27,

1961. This application Oct. 23, 1965, Ser. No. 503,984

4 Claims. (Cl. 28593) This application is a continuation of patentapplication, Serial No. 127,248, filed July 27, 1961, and now abandoned.

This invention relates to water closet supports and, more particularly,to the type of Water closet supports used to support water closets knownas wall type water closets.

The invention relates more particularly to wall type Water closetsupports which support water closets in batteries of a number of closetseach along a generally horizontal waste line. It is necessary for ahorizontal waste line to incline toward its outlet or toward the soilstack into which it empties. It is also necessary to have each closet ofsuch a battery supported at the same height above the floor but with theconnection to the horizontal waste line from each closet being slightlylower than the one upstream therefrom to accommodate the incline orpitch of the waste line toward the soil stack or sewer. It is difficultto make the necessary vertical adjustment of the connection from thecloset to the waste line with ordinary pipe fittings. It has becomecommon practice to obtain this adjustment by complex connectingmechanisms.

It has also been common practice to obtain the necessary verticaladjustment by connecting the closet directly to the waste line by meansof a face plate having an opening therein communicating with the'closeton one side and communicating with a vertically elongated branch openingin the waste line on the other side. In other applications of a similartype fitting, a special fitting in the line has a vertically elongatedboss on the branch which could be drilled at various heights toaccommodatte the pitch of the waste line. All of these methods requireheavy expensive fittings and considerable installation labor.

In the conception of the present invention, it was considered that thecloset could be connected to the waste line by means of a modifiedZ-shaped conduit arm having the plane of its center line generallyparallel to the center line of the waste line and swingably connected tothe waste line at one end and to the closet at the other, therebyproviding the vertical adjustment required. This presented severalproblems, however. Since the spacing of one closet from the other in abattery of closets is limited, the connecting conduit would form arelatively short radius and, therefore, there would be a relativelylarge lateral movement of the closet and of the conduit for any verticaladjustment.

This would result in an erratic .spacing of the closets. Also, the flowpattern at the point of entry into the waste line would have to besanitary and in accordance with sound plumbing practice. In addition,the plane of the inlet opening of the conduit would have to be verticaland parallel to the center line of the waste line for all positions ofthe conduit and the assembly would have to be rigid enough to preventundue fiexure of the conduit under the load of the water closet and userthereof.

The spacing of closets is specified by the architect of the building inwhich the closets are to be installed. This spacing of closets in abattery is usually in the range of from thirty to thirty-six inches.Therefore, the length of arm used to connect each closet to the linewould be limited to thirty inches or less in a direction parallel to thewaste line. Since the curvature of an arc of thirty Patented Sept. 6,1966 inches or less is substantial, the spacing of the closets along theline would vary substantially from upstream end to downstream end of theline. This variation is indicated in FIG. 9 of the drawings.

The present invention contemplates using the above principle of mountinga conduit arm on the waste line fitting so that one end of the arm maybe swung in a path in order to get a vertical adjustment of the fittingrelative to the water closet. It also contemplates a structure tocorrect lateral displacement of the closet along the are through whichis would ordinarily be swung in order that the closet will experience nosubstantial lateral displacement from uniform spacing along a battery ofclosets.

In one form of the present invention, the latter is accomplished by apivot point eccentric to the center of the inlet to the waste line fromthe arm about which the are through which a closet attached to the armis swung so that the closets can be adjusted vertically withoutsubstantial horizontal movement. By properly selecting such an eccentricpoint, the distal end of the arm will have a minimum of horizontaldisplacement from a median point.

By utilizing a combination of an eccentric pivot point relative to theconduit arm outlet along with the large arc through which the other endof the fitting may be swung, a substantial vertical adjustment can beaccomplished without substantial horizontal variation of the closetposition and, yet, the fitting arm can be maintained relatively short.

In another embodiment of the invention, elongated openings are providedin the waste line for the closets and each closet is connected to thewaste line by a short conduit arm having an apertured plate attached toits outlet. The plate is connected to the waste line by studs which arereceived in curved slots in the plate. The studs allow the plate to movelaterally to compensate for the lateral movement due to the curvature ofthe arcuate path through which the distal end would swing but for thecompensation.

For sanitary flow characteristics from a horizontal plumbing wastebranch, the entry from the branch should be at an angle in the order offorty-five degrees or less to the center line of the waste line. Aswinging branch arm of the type described cannot be assembled fromstandard pipe fittings to meet this requirement and still keep the planeof the inlet end vertical and parallel to the center line of the wasteline for all positions of the arm. If a ninety degree T is used in thewaste line, the flow is unsanitary. If a forty-five degree T is used,vertical adjustment is lost.

By using a modified Z-shaped branch arm having its outlet join the wasteline with center lines at fortyafive degrees but connecting to the wastefitting at a plane parallel to the waste line and perpendicular to thefloor, it is possible to swing the arm through an appreciable arc whilestill maintaining sanitary flow characteristics and keeping the plane ofthe inlet vertical and parallel to the center line of the waste line.Coincidental with this design, the outlet of the arm acquires anelongated or elliptical cross section which, with an encircling boss orflange, creates a very strong, rigid section at the point of maximumstress in the arm so that it will support a face plate and water closetwith minimum flexure.

The fittings disclosed herein have numerous advantages over fittingspresently available. For example, since .the fitting is made upprincipally of a fitting member and an arm, each being relativelyslender pieces, several of them can be molded in a single mold. Theopening into the waste line fitting can 'be small and, therefore,requires a smaller fitting than in previous arrangements, Such fittingsas disclosed are usually made of cast iron or brass for connecting incopper lines.

It is, accordingly, an object of the present invention to provide animproved support for water closets.

Another object of the invention is to provide a support for waterclosets wherein the closet outlet is connected to the waste line througha conduit arm swingably in an arc whose plane is parallel to the wasteline.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a support for waterclosets wherein a vertical adjustment of the waste fittings in a batteryof closets is accomplished by swinging a short conduit arm about a pivoteccentric to the outlet of the arm.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved fitting incombination with a generally horizontally disposed waste line forconnecting a water closet thereto wherein means is provided tocompensate for horizontal displacement of the closet throughout the pathof movement of the connecting arm.

It is a further object of the invention to provide an improved fittingand waste line combination wherein an arm is connected to a line througha shaped opening and the arm is slidably connected to the line tocompensate for lateral adjustment relative to the fitting.

With the above and other objects in view, the present invention consistsof the combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter more fullydescribed, illustrated in the accompanying drawings and moreparticularly pointed out in the appended claims, it being understoodthat changes may be made in the form, size, proportions, and minordetails of construction without departing from the spirit or sacrificingany of the advantages of the invention.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a top view of the combination fitting according to theinvention;

FIG. 2 is a front view of part of the fitting shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side view of a part of the fitting shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view taken on line 44 of FIG. 3;

FIGS. 5, 6, 7, and 8 are views of other embodiments of the invention;and

FIG. 9 is a schematic view of a typical installation.

Now with more particular reference to the drawings, FIG. 1 shows afitting 10 adapted to be supported as one of a series of such fittingswhich, with spacer pipes between them, comprise a horizontal waste line.The fitting 10 has a hub 11 on one end thereof which is suitable forconnecting it by means of a caulked joint in a waste line. An end 12 issuitable to he received in a hub such as hub 11 of a similar fittingsuch as shown. The laying length of the fitting could be thirty-sixinches, for example, which is a standard spacing for water closets setin batteries, therefore eliminating the need for pipe spacers.

The fitting has a bell shaped boss 34 defining a vent opening 13suitable for connecting a conventional vent pipe. An elongated opening14 is formed in the side of the fitting 10 and a boss 15 is supportedaround this opening. The boss 15 forms a border for the opening 14. Theboss has an outside finished surface 16 with peripherally spaced,thereaded openings 17, 18 and 19 formed therein.

A hollow swinging Z-shaped arm 20 has an intermediate generally straightpart 21 disposed generally parallel to the fitting and an end 22 isturned outwardly generally at right angles thereto. An end 23 is opengenerally toward the fitting.

A flange 24 is integrally attached to the arm 20 and forms a borderaround the-opening in the end 23. The flange 24 has a generallycontoured outside peripheral surface and it is pivotally connected tothe fitting 10 by means of a pivot bolt 25. The 'bolt 25 extends througha hole 26 in the flange 24 and threadably engages the opening 19 in thefitting.

The heads of bolts in .the openings 17 and 18 overlie the flange 24 andmay clamp and thereby fasten it in position on the fitting. Lugs 29 and30 form outwardly extending stops which engage the stop bolt in theopening 17 in extreme positions of the arm 20 so that the movement ofthe arm is limited.

A face plate for supporting the closet will normally be supported on theend of the arm adjacent the threaded end 22. Ears 31 are integrallyattached to the end 22. The cars 31 will engage the face plate andprevent it from moving out of position when suitably bolted together.Slots for the bolts in the face plate permit it to be located invertical position for all positions of the arm. An outlet 33 from theboss 34 defining the opening 13 of the vent pipe is above a top edge 35of the hollow in the fitting 10. Therefore, even though the fitting isbecoming full, any liquid therein will not obstruct the vent. Since thevent opens to the arm and above the top edge 35, even though the fitting10 is full, the branch will be vented.

In the embodiment of the invention shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, a fitting 310is shown having a vent 313 as in FIG. 4. The fitting has a hub 311 forreceiving an end such as end 312 of another pipe in the waste line. Aswinging arm 321 is integrally attached to a plate 323 and the plate 323is connected to the fitting. The plate 323 has a short top slot 325 andarcuate long slots 329 and 330. These slots each receive one of thebolts 317, 318, and 319, which connect the hollow swinging arm 321 tothe fitting 310. An outlet is threaded at 322 to receive a suitable locknut and lugs 331 are provided to support a suitable face platerestrained between them and the lock nut.

When the device is installed in a waste line pitched toward the outletend, the difference in height between the elongated opening in the sideof the fitting and the outlet from the closet can be accomplished andcompensated for by swinging the arm 321 on the bolts 317, 318, and 319.To compensate for lateral movement through the arc of swinging movementof the threaded end 322, the arm can be adjusted laterally to compensatefor arcuate movement by plate 323 sliding backward on the bolt 318 inthe slot 325 so that uniform spacing of the closets can be maintained.Thus, the movement is similar to but not the same as in FIG. 1 as thereis no fixed pivot point within the confines of the plate 323. This willmake it possible to maintain exact spacing of the closets.

The bolts 317, 318, and 319 slide in the slots 325, 329, and 330 in theswinging arm flange as shown and are located in fixed positions on thefitting. This makes possible a motion of both rotation and translationof the threaded outlet end 322. Many slot arrangements are possible;however, the one shown is illustrative. The motion resulting from theembodiment shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 allows the closet to be located moreprecisely in a horizontal position than the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1to 4 where extreme accuracy is required since the rotation is about afixed center in the first embodiment while in the embodiment shown inFIGS. 5 and 6, the vertical motion of the inlet end of the swinging armmay be maintained in a straight line.

In the embodiment of the invention shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, a fitting hasa hub 411 and an outlet 412 with a hollow swinging arm 421 connectedthereto as in the embodiment shown in FIG. 1. In the present embodiment,the arm 421 swings and it connects to the fitting in the same manner asin FIGS. 1, 2, 3, and 4; however, in this embodiment, a cam lockingarrangement 439 is connected to the boss defining the vent opening bymeans of a bolt or stud 440 and the swinging cam 439 has an overlyingflange 446 with a contoured surface 441 which overlies a flange 443 on aflange 424.

The swinging cam 439 may be calibrated with numerals 1, 2, 3, 4 forexample, and these numerals are adapted to align with the correspondingnumerals on the flange 424. The cam is so shaped that when the swingingarm 421 is swung to a position shown to align, for instance, numeral 2on the cam with numeral 2 on the flange, it will indicate that outlet422 is swung upward a predetermined amount above the second closet inthe line of the given pitch or a fixed amount above the center line ofthe fitting. By using the calibrations, a plumber can readily determineat what position to lock the swinging arm 421 for any closet in theline. For example, the first closet on the upstream end of the batterymight be connected with the cam in the number 1 calibration position,the second in number 2, the third in number 3, and the fourth in number4. Additional calibrations could be added.

The foregoing specification sets forth the invention in its preferredpractical forms but the structure shown is capable of modificationwithin a range of equivalents without departing from the invention whichis to be understood is broadly novel as is commensurate with theappended claims.

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property orprivilege is claimed are defined as follows:

1. A fitting for connecting a closet in a generally horizontal lineslightly inclined toward the outlet comprising a hollow member havingmeans on the ends thereof for connecting it in said line,

a hollow arm disposed generally parallel to said line,

an opening in one side of said hollow member,

said opening being longer in a horizontal direction than its height,

a finished outwardly disposed surface around said opena finished surfaceon said arm around a hollow end thereof engaging said finished surfaceon said hollow member,

pivot means swingably connecting said arm to said member,

said pivot means being attached to said member above and on the side ofsaid opening remote from the distal end of said arm whereby said distalend swings through a generally vertical line,

said arm having a peripheral edge defining a curve of predeterminedshape,

a cam swingably connected to said hollow member,

an edge of said cam engaging said curved edge,

said cam and said hollow member adjacent said peripheral edge havingcalibration marks indicating the position to which said distal end ofsaid arm is swung.

2. A drainage system comprising a hollow body having a longitudinalcentral axis adapted to be connected in a drain line,

a flange defining an opening in one side of said hollow body,

a generally Z-shaped, hollow rigid arm having an inlet end and an outletend and an elongated intermediate P a flange at said outlet end definingan opening,

said opening in said body being substantially larger than said openingat said outlet end of said arm,

each of said flanges being radially extending from their respective armand body,

said flange on said outlet end of said arm being so sized and shapedwith respect to the flange on said body as to completely overlie andseal the edges of said opening in said hollow body when moved to anypermissible angle of adjustment with respect thereto,

connecting means on said inlet end of said rigid arm to connect a watercloset thereto,

means swingably connecting said flanges to permit relative movementbetween said body and said rigid arm to thereby swing said arm relativeto said body through a range of angular positions and to move saidconnecting means in a substantially straight line generallyperpendicular to said axis of said fitting body,

the openings in said body and arm being in full, un-

restricted fluid flow communication at all angular positions ofadjustment,

and fastening means to secure said flanges in fluid tight adjustedposition.

3. The fitting recited in claim 2 wherein said swingable connectingmeans comprises at least two bolts attached to said fitting andextending therefrom,

and spaced slots in one said flange receiving a part of said bolts,

said bolts being slidable in said slots when said arm is swung relativeto said fitting.

4. The fitting recited in claim 2 wherein said swingable connectingmeans comprises a hole in said flange,

and a pivot bolt in said fitting extending through said flange,

said arm, when unfastened, being adapted to swing around said bolt.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,473,439 11/1923Marsh 285-455 CARL W. TOMLIN, Primary Examiner.

T. F. CALLAGHAN, Assistant Examiner.

1. A FITTING FOR CONNECTING A CLOSET IN A GENERALLY HORIZONTAL LINESLIGHTLY TOWARD THE OUTLET COMPRISING A HOLLOW MEMBER HAVING MEANS ONTHE ENDS THEREOF FOR CONNECTING IT IN SAID LINE, A HOLLOW ARM DISPOSEDGENERALLY PARALLEL TO SAID LINE, AN OPENING IN ONE SIDE OF SAID HOLLOWMEMBER, SAID OPENING BEING LONGER IN A HORIZONTAL DIRECTION THAN ITSHEIGHT, A FINISHED OUTWARDLY DISPOSED SURFACE AROUND SAID OPENING, AFINISHED SURFACE ON SAID ARM AROUND A HOLLOW END THEREOF ENGAGING SAIDFINISHED SURFACE ON SAID HOLLOW MEMBER, PIVOT MEANS SWINGABLY CONNECTINGSAID ARM TO SAID MEMBER, SAID PIVOT MEANS BEING ATTACHED TO SAID MEMBERABOVE AND ON THE SIDE OF SAID OPENING REMOTE FROM THE DISTAL END OF SAIDARM WHEREBY SAID DISTAL END SWINGS THROUGH A GENERALLY VERTICAL LINE,SAID ARM HAVING A PERIPHERAL EDGE DEFINING A CURVE OF PREDETERMINEDSHAPE, A CAM SWINGABLY CONNECTED TO SAID HOLLOW MEMBER, AN EDGE OF SAIDCAM ENGAGING SAID CURVED EDGE, SAID CAM AND SAID HOLLOW MEMBER ADJACENTSAID PERIPHERAL EDGE HAVING CALIBRATION MARKS INDICATING THE POSITION TOWHICH SAID DISTAL END OF SAID ARM IS SWUNG.